Experiments in Style: the N + 7 method

A great way to generate new potential literature + a bonus website!

Apr 16, 2023

Greetings!

Welcome to my ongoing (and potentially never-ending!) project, experiments in style. The Introduction below explains what it’s all about, but if you already know then just go straight to Introduction to N + 7, below.

Enjoy!

Introduction

One of the things I’ve been trying out is reworking a piece of text into a completely different style. A full exposition and explanation are given here:

Eclecticism: Reflections on literature and life

Experimenting with styles

Introduction A good way of improving your writing skills is to try reworking texts into a completely different style or genre. To some extent this overlaps with parody writing, which I intend to explore in a separate post, but as a quick example, consider this. In Brand X Fiction, a collection of parodies of fiction writers…

3 years ago · 2 likes · 6 comments · Terry Freedman

Here is the original text on which these experiments or transformations are based:

The original (template) text

In the middle of the night, I woke up (if you can call being semi-conscious being awake), walked purposefully towards the door to go to the bathroom — and almost knocked myself out.

The reason was that in the twin states of entire darkness and semi-somnambulance I was facing in a different direction from the one I thought I was facing. As a result, instead of walking through the door, I tried to walk through the wall.

The next few days brought nausea and headaches. After much prevarication I went to Accident and Emergency, where I waited petrified among people for whom “social distancing” means not quite touching you, and who wore their masks as a chin-warmer.

An hour and a half later I emerged into the twilight, secure in the knowledge that I had nothing more serious than mild concussion. I failed to do much writing, but I was pleased to have read a further 17% of my book.

Introduction to the N + 7 method

Take any text, and replace each noun with the noun seven nouns along in the dictionary. For example, in my dictionary the seventh noun along from know-all is koala. So the sentence “He is a real know-all” becomes “He is a real koala”.

This is supposed to be an objective, mathematical approach to generating new text from existing work — an approach that cuts the writer out of the creative process. However, it is not really objective at all for several reasons. Can you guess what they are?

This may strike you as pointless, but all you need is a great-sounding sentence to serve as a basis for a whole new train of thought, which may lead to a short story, a poem, or something else.

Sometimes the results are hilarious. Here is a review someone wrote of an introductory course I ran about the Oulipo:

Terry Freedman is a masterpiece. He delivered one of the best courthouses I have been a stuffing on. An engaging roof through workaday with a bit of matricide thrown in. More stump from the wobbler please!

Version 1

In the middle of the nightie, I woke up (if you can call being semi-conscious being awake), walked purposefully towards the doornail to go to the batman — and almost knocked myself out.

The rebirth was that in the twin statesmen of entire dashboard and semi-song I was facing in a different directrix from the one I thought I was facing. As a resuscitation, instead of walking through the doornail, I tried to walk through the Walloon.

The next few daydreams brought Nazarene and headiness. After much prevarication I went to Accomplice and Emigration, where I waited petrified among peppermints for whom “social distancing” means not quite touching you, and who wore their massacres as a chine-warmer.

A houseboat and a halfcock later I emerged into the twister, secure in the koan that I had nothing more serious than mild conditioning. I failed to do much wryness, but I was pleased to have read a further 17% of my booking.

Version 2

In the middle of the nineteen, I woke up (if you can call being semi-conscious being awake), walked purposefully towards the dory to go to the battalion — and almost knocked myself out.

The receipt was that in the twin statistics of entire dates and semi-somnambulance I was facing in a different disaccord from the one I thought I was facing. As a reticence, instead of walking through the dory, I tried to walk through the wapiti.

The next few debutantes brought navy and heart. After much prevarication I went to Accoutrements and Emission, where I waited petrified among perdition for whom “social distancing” means not quite touching you, and who wore their massacres as a chipmunk-warmer.

A hovel and a halogen later I emerged into the twilight, secure in the knowledge that I had nothing more serious than mild conductor. I failed to do much xenophobia, but I was pleased to have read a further 17% of my boot.

Bonus website

Trawling through a dictionary looking for nouns is very time-consuming. Fortunately, you can cheat if you wish. Just head on over to the N + 7 generator, plug in your text, select either the shorter dictionary or the longer one, and then click on Submit text. The generator will display your original text and N + versions from N + 1 to N + 15. To be honest, even the larger dictionary doesn’t do amazingly well, but it’s a huge time-saver. In any case, you can always mix and match from the different results. Yes, it’s cheating, but if it helps you come up with some great story starts or poem ideas, doesn’t the end justify the means?

Commentary

You can see from the fact that I’ve provided two versions that this approach is not as objective as it may at first appear. For a start, the result depends on which dictionary you use. The first version was based on the Penguin English Dictionary from 1965. The second was based on the Little Oxford Dictionary published in 1969. I mention the dates because over time some words disappear from dictionaries while others are added, so the date of publication will affect the results.

Also, had I used Chambers, the Shorter Oxford Dictionary (far larger than the “little one”!) or Merriam-Webster the outcome would have been substantially different.

Also, of course, the writer does have a say in the matter. Given the choice between a word that might be offensive to some people, and a word that almost certainly won’t, the writer may decide to select the latter even if it is not seven nouns further on.

Leaving all that aside, where does the idea of potential literature come in? Well, looking at these two versions, I think I could do something with “Accoutrements and Emissions”. “Accomplice and Emigration” definitely has potential.

What do you think?